Floater lock chamber



A. ERNocKY FLOATER Locx CHAMBER Sept. 2, 1952 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed Feb', 27, 1948 RII# IN V EN TOR.

` Lock chamberszhaving noa-ters Patented Sept. 2, 1952 UNhee STATE FLoA'rER'LoCnjcHAMBEBj Andloslav ernocky, Prague, Czechoslovakia," Applications-www 27, 194s, serial No.' 11,731

In Czechoslovakia August 10, 1945 secrionnrubli@ Law semnugust s, 194s Patent expires August 10, 1965 The present invention relatesto aloclrchamber used' Vfor navigation purposes and', Serving for raising or lowering of oating vessels from one waterlevel to another.

It is an'object of .the invention to provide a lock .chamber working withoutlossoi Water and requiring no mechanical means for raising, of the oater used for this purpose. A further-object of the invention is to speedup the passageofvessels through the lock chamber. l f

and pressure devices are'known per se, they vare however requiring valways the samediiference of waterflevels and are needing for the movement ofthe loaters me.- chanical driving means vand a constant force dur.- ing the whole lifting'of the floaters. vlVIoreo verl-the use of' packing for the by pass tube with regard -to `the floater is unsuitableas the floaterhrequires 'a free movement in all directions.- Y.

Other known chambers vof thiskind using com.. pressedair cr .air of reduced pI 3S,.SllleA are transferring the `water from thev chamber proper vv in-te the floater or in the opposite way and it isnecessary that its content is equal to the contentoflhe chamber or in an other embodiment to have twice the content of it.

According to theV invention thefloater does not .ificlalma (cifrar-.8)

. 2 cross-section of the floater is two thirds of the areaef `the lock chamber. The ship which is vto beraised or lowered is floatingin the area of the lool;V chamber outside of the iloater. When the floater is immersed by means which will be eX- 'plalped later @n lndetail, the water level .in the Fig. 1 tis showing schematically ya simple one viloater lock chamber in sectional view prepared for raising .of 'a ship. u l

iFig; 2 a similar view With'the for-lowering of `a ship.

Fig. 3 a sectional view of a lock chamber with .two'iloaters 'f Fig. 4 the same View of 'a double lock chamber `with two iloaters. L g Fig. 5 a, longitudinal sectional lview oia stepped uplock chamber. i

'-vFig.' 6 is :a sectional View of aQallQr lockgand Eig; .7 is a plan view. of a iloateri lock.

chamberprepered Referring to Figs. Y6 and 7. ofthe drawliygsa lock vchamber' K isdisposed intermediate anupper .basin N and a lower basin NCL- Lockgates W1, and

-Vd'.:separate 'the lock chamberK from the upper and lower basin,.respectively. i In the lock chamber. K a oater Pis arrangil.

lock chambergis raisedand rwith it 'the ship iloatving on the-water contained in vthe lock chamber outside: of the rloater When. the heater.. is raisedto aghigherposition Icy-means which will -beexplained detail lateron, the water level in the-loci; chamberoutside of thefloater drops toa lowerlevel, ,Consequently by .immersing, lor raising the floaterl the water level in thelocl chamber israised, or lowered; respectively, as desired.` -A I ASllplrnosi-ng that the to-tal area of the loclchamber is F and the area of the floater %F, an immersingfof the floater for a distance h below v.the lower.- water level willdisplace a volume o f water 2/31LF. 'This volume of waterl willfbe displaced into' the adjacent ereef ef. thefleeh Chamber Where the ship Ais eetihsehdwil1-raiee the Water :level there. abovejthe-lower water level for adistance offhqsincethe area of thev lock chamber outside fythetiloater'is half vthe area of` the floater, i. e.

Since the, ffleeter is -1mmersed new fer. e .diS- tance hbelow the lowerswater level and the water level in the lock chamber has been `raised abovev the lower water level for a distanceh, fthel minimum height of the il-oatervis 3h, if the .,paterfs not to be linurl-creed with its top below the higher weierflerel f 4The height of the vfloater being `at least 3h-and .the differencebetween the lower andthe higher .waterlevel the lockl chamber being 2h, the

height ofV the. floaterhinv the described arrangement is substantially 1.5 timesthe difference b etween the. higher and the `lower Water level inthe loci;-charrllaenv Ihe yin lmersing ofthe floater is aflected by 1lflguit with water, and it is raised by com- Pressedair.

The-,areaofrthe water-suriaceftakenupfby :the

iloater, and the'volume of this oateris compa-ratively verylarge, in a preferred embodiment o f .theypresent invention the-area of .thehoriaon-tal lvllith reference to'Figsl, 6 and 7a lock chamber K Vis ilrst arranged, which may .be alternately opened to theiupper: or lower water basin, the upper basin .N 'having the VWater vlevel hlt-libe:

vlower basin' .Chet v.shown on this figurel ,f the water .level elw-- i In Vthe positengshown ohfie. -1 the loehiehamher may, hegeehneetel with the .lower water 4heed-h7 iA. fleeier .P ieierreh-eed-withr v.hat he-.leek veh..ehi-her the-:upper leert Q of whieh enenkin the-entiere directiva merrhe halle@ the .Welter feheeef i:he lower friert O1.. eheh downward acoaeav the air space. The upper part O is connected by means of a pair of telescopic tubes a, b, with the upper basin N, the tube a being rigid with the floater P, the tube b stationary in the masonry of the lock chamber. Both tubes are provided with double walls so as to form annular spaces between them to seal the water and air space of the floater P from the water of the lock chamber. The fioater P may thus perform a raising or lowering movement Within the lock chamber K. A iiexible hose Ve is further provided to connect the air space O1 of the floater P with the compressed air supply or with the air outlet which may be raised above the upper water level hv of this basin.

Let us suppose that a ship should be raised from the lower Water level spv to the upper water level he. It enters the lock chamber K in the space between the wallof the lock chamber K and the floater P, whereas the lock gate of this chamber (not shown) is closed.- The air hose Vz is thereafter connected rwith the air outlet enabling the air in the air space Oi to escape and the iloater P to sink. Simultaneously, the telescopic tube C is raised above the high water level hv to prevent a too quick iilling ofthe water space O of the floater from the upper basin N (see Fig. 1'). The iioater sinks as the air space O1 is decreasing down to the O1 shown on Fig. 1. The telescopic tube C is then lowered with its end below the level of the upper basin N enabling water to flow through tubes b and a to the water space O causing thus a further sinking of the floater P. Fig. 1 shows the oater in an intermediate position, the space O partly filled with water and the level in the lock chamber K somewhat raised. If the free floor space of the lock chamber K and the oor space of the oater are in a proportion of 1:2, the sinking of the oater P for acertain height causes the raising of the water level in the lock chamber K for the double of it. The air space of the iloater is thereby further compressed to the amount 01H. Fig. 1 shows the final stage, with the water levels of the upper basin N and of the lock chamber being equal and the gates of the lock chamber may be opened to admit the ship to the upper basin.

The opposite procedure is used for lowering a ship from the upper to the lower water level. With the lock gates closed and the telescopio tube C raised above the water level of the upper basin, compressed air is admitted into the air space O1 of the oater P, which raises to a certain extent until the air occupies the space 011V shown in Fig. 2. The supply of compressed air is then stopped and the lock gates closed. The telescopic tube C is then lowered bringing its end below the level of the water in the water space O of the oater P allowing water flow through this tube from the water space O into the basin N (see Fig. 2). The speed of the low of the water is regulated by the height of the telescopic tube C. The air in the air space 01W expands when the water space O is emptying causing a further raising of the floater P and a lowering of the water level in the lock chamber until the original state shown in Fig. l is attained.

Thus, no water is lost during the whole performance of the raising or lowering of the ship and only a comparatively small power is required as the raising of the ship takes place due to the floater being lowered when lled with water from `according to Fig, 1.

4 the upper basin and the lowering is done by raising the floater for an amount allowing water to flow back to this basin.

Th-e use of the telescopic tube C is advantageous for a better control of the speed of the flowing water and of-.the height of the water levels. It is obvious that the device would work without this tube being extended beyond the water level of the upper basin, the control of the water iiow and water. level would be however not so convenient.

Fig. 3 shows a double iloater lock chamber acting in a similar way. The floater I is situated within the lock chamber similar as in Fig. 1, the iloater II is in the lower basin. The air space of the `iloater I does not communicate with any air supply or outlet, the air space of the floater II is controlled in a way similar to that of the floater The water spaces of both floaters are connected by the tubes T, Ti, T2, provided with water seals. Y

The height of the water level of the lock chamber V is controlled by admitting or releasing air into or from the air space of the loater II. In the position shown on Fig. 3, the water level in the lock chamber V is raised to the level 1w of the not shown upper basin. By releasing air from the air space of the iloater II this iloater sinks and allows water from the iioater I to flow through the tube T into the iloater II. The air compressed in the air space Br expands thereby and lifts the oater I simultaneously until suilicient water has overflown from the floater I to iloater II so that the floater I is raised to such an extent as to lower the water level in the lock chamber V tothe height spo of the lower water basin.

By admitting compressed air into the air space Bn of the floater II, theowing back of the water from oater II to oater I is achieved by simultaneously raising the level of the lock chamber V until the water level hv of the upper basin is reached. Y

Fig. 4 shows a double lock chamber with iloaters inY each of them. Both oaters are alike and their water spaces connected by the telescopic tubes T3, T4. The air spaces Br are both connected by tubes not shown with valves for adleasing air from the air space of one floater and admitting of compressed air into the air space of the other floater. This arrangement is the most economical from the point of view of power consumption.

Fig. 5 shows a stepped up lock chamber used in cases of greater diierences of water .levels The said gure is a sectional view through both chambers and the upper and lower basin with the iloaters and the corresponding recesses for their operation behind. The diierence of water levels of both basinsis divided into two equal heights Si overcome each by oneof the lockv chambers. A 'floater I" having an upper water'space and a lower air space similar to that ln Fig. 1 is arranged within the upper lock chamber, thecross section of which corresponds to thatshown in Fig. l. A similar floater II" is provided within the lower lock chamber having however .between the water and air space an additional hermetically sealed air space D'of the height Si. Both water spaces are again communicating by means connecting or connectingwiththe upper orlower `basin. The -whole construction and performance islbut for the additional-hermetically "closed air space D similar to that of the double lock chamber in Fig. 4. The additional air space D provides for-the different height of both lock chambers. In the position shown in Fig. 5, the upper lock chamber is prepared for admission of a ship from the upper basin. At closed doors of ithe lock chambers compressed air has been admitted to the lower air space of iioater II, raising this floater somewhat, so that the water level of its water space is higher than that of the floater I". Simultaneously the air space of the upper oater I" is opened into the surrounding space. Water from the oater II" flows through the tubes Ts, T7, T into the water space of fioater I", which is lowered and displaces the water contained in the upper lock chamber so that its level rises up to the level of the upper basin, after which the gates Uh may be opened. In an analogous way the level in this lock chamber is lowered, and equally the level in the lower lock chamber.

The arrangement according to the invention does not require any water from the upper basin so that it is especially suitable for canals, which have either no or only a poor water supply. It equally enables a very quick performance ras no water s admitted into the lock chambers and the raising of the water level is solely achieved by displacing the water in the lock chamber by a floater. The speed of raising of the water level may be therefore considerably increased as the water is displaced along the whole length of the chamber causing no whirling or currents. The power required for the displacing of the water is comparatively small as the water is in fact not lifted but solely displaced, so that only the difference of water levels required for an overflow of the water from one space to another must be provided.

I claim:

l. A iioater lock system of the character described, including the combination, with a stationary lock chamber in which the water level is to be altered, of at least one additional stationary chamber or basin disposed adjacent to the lock chamber; xed means separating the two chambers; a floater partly immersed in water in the stationary lock chamber and having a. downwardly open air chamber and a separate upwardly open water chamber; and interconnect-v ing conduit means extending between both stationary chambers and connected at one end to the water chamber in the oater and extending with the other end thereof into the additional stationary chamber or basin for empyting the water chamber of said iioater into or iilling it from said additional stationary chamber or basin.

2. A loater lock system of the character described, including the combination, with a stationary lock chamber in which the water level is to be altered, of at least one additional stationary chamber or basin disposed adjacent to the lock chamber; fixed means separating the two chambers; a iioater partly immersed in water in the stationary lock chamber and having a downwardly open air chamber and a separately upwardly open water chamber with upwardly open adjustable means partly immersed in water in the *additional 'stationary chamberforfbasim; and

interconnecting statioriayrszconduit means sbctween both stationary chambers connected to the watenchamber 'ifmtl'iejflaterfand extending into the upwardly open adjustable means in the additional stationary -chamberorbasin for empyting Vthewater chamber in the loater into; andiilling it from said upwardly open adiustablemeansfin said additional stationary chamber Aor basin.

3. A floater lock system of the character described, including the combination, with a stationary lock chamber in which the water level is to be altered, of at least one additional stationary chamber or basin disposed adjacent to the lock chamber; xed means separating the two chambers; a stationary conduit extending between the two stationary chambers and having the ends thereof projecting individually upward and opening upward in said stationary cham-r bers; a oater partly immersed in the lock chamber and having an open top and an open bottom and surrounding the one upwardly extending end of the conduit located in said lock chamber;

an intermediate water tight partition fixed in the oater and having an aperture and therein separating the interior into an upwardly open water chamber and a downwardly open air chamber; a water sealed connection between said one upwardly extending end of said conduit and the aperture in said partition allowing free vertical l movements of said iioater in said rstationary lock chamber; an upwardly open means vertically vmovable in the additional stationary chamber ory 1v basin; and a water sealed connection between the upwardlyv extending end ofvsaid conduit in said additional stationary chamber or basin and said upwardly open means allowing vertical movement of the latter in said additional stationary chamber or basin to expose the upper end of said upwardly open means above the water level in the latter chamber.

4. 'A floater lock system of the character described, including the combination, with a stationary lock chamber in which the water level is to be altered, of at least one additional station-.- ary chamber or basin disposed adjacent to the lock chamber; fixed means separating the two chambers; a stationary conduit extending between the two stationary chambers and having the ends thereof projecting individually upward and opening upward in said stationary chambers; a floater partly immersed in the lock chamber and having an open top and an open bottom and surrounding the one upwardly extending end of the conduit located in said lock chamber; an intermediate water tight partition xed in theoater and having an aperture therein and separating the interior into an upwardly open water chamber and a downwardly openair chamber; awater sealed connection between said one upwardly extending end of said conduit and the aperture in said partition allowing free vertical movements of said floater in said stationary lock chamber; a second floater partly immersed in water in the additional stationary chamber or basin having a downwardly open air chamber and an upwardly open water chamber; a partition in the second iioater separating the air chamber from the water chamber therein; the partition in said second floater having an aperture therein;

vand a second water sealed connection between the latter aperture andthe upwardly projecting end of the conduit located in said additional stationary chamber or basin, said conduit serving to empty the water chamber of the rst men- 

